Automatic phonograph



Nolv. a, 1942. A D T HAL 2,300,779

AUTOMATIC PHONOGRAPH Filed May 24, 1940 7 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTOR S W: Ilia m 11 09 Kare Frederz'rk 11. Kolmelz ATTO EY Nov. 3, 1942. w, 95 A T ETAL 2,300,779 I AUTOMATIC PHONOGRAPH j Filed May 24, 1940 7 Sheets-Shani 5 134? 1 v 1M v m V 142 4 2 F2155 147 flqfl/Z 15/ W154 Nov. 3, 1942.

w. A. DE HART. EIAL AUTOMATIC PHONOGRAPH Filed may 24, 1940 7 Sheets-Sheet 6 ATTO Ex "Nov. 3, 1942. w. A. DE HART ETAL AUTOMATIC PHONOGRAPH Filed May 24, 1940 7 She.ets Sheet 7 INVENTORS William/Y 0e liar! F ed enrkmA aime/z ATT 'NEY.

Patented Nov. 3, 1942 'aaooxmvl AU'roMarrc rnonooaarn mums.ne mmnecm.mang I A. .Kolmetz, Sunnyside, Long Island, N.) 12,- .as-

signors', to Liberty Musi o Shops,

New York,', r

.N. Y., a corporation of New York Application May 24, 1940, ammo. 336,972 Y (cinem -'10 I I the'mechanism at the-conclusion of the playing 13 claims.

Our presentinvention relates to automatic phonographs andaims to provide certain improvements therein. More specifically it relates to automatic phonographs of the type' described in the patent to Mitchell et al. #1,936,335 and Rich 2,198,294, and wherein areoord after-it has been reproduced is automatically raise'd'over the central pin on the turntable and discharged laterally therefrom by the rotation of the turntable.

Although automatic phonographs made in ac- 1o after a record has been discharged from the cordance with the patented structures mentioned turntable; a j 1 have met with great commercial uccess, there Fig.16is a side elevation of the mechanism" as has been a crying'need for a compact; 'economieal viewed from the lower sideof Fig. 3. a i automatic phonograph which canflnotjonly play 'Fig. 7 is'a sectional detail taken substantially a .pluralityo records in succession...but. which 15 2 8 e plane f Fi 12-" can play both sides of; each record in succession.

Accordingly, the primary object of ourinvention isto provide a simple, practicable and economical automatic phonographjwhich will play both sides of each of a stack of records mounted on a turntable in succession. Afurther object is to provide such device which is compact and of light weight so that itmay be embodied .in a portable unit if desired. A'further, object is to provide such device 1 having selective, adjusting 25 pl n l e i -1 O 8- 6'01 1 Ot er means wherebyv either a stack of 10 or 12"rec r s p i w O ,1 9h m with t t p; Ql'dS mounted 011 the turntablemay ,have both P t I f sides of each record played in succession. I 3 fi i n t e a ng, p nes The foregoingand other objects of our inthe -fl l j vention not specifically enumerated we accom- 30 Fig- 14 is asection taken along th P ne 0?- plish by providing an automatic'phon'og raph'. of

the type wherein theturntable is adapted to sup port a stack of records, the topmost of which is laterally dischargeable' from the turntable, means for receiving the recordupon its discharge, means for replacing the record on the turntable with the sideopposite to that last played facing upwardly. and means for discharging the record from j the receiving means onto .a supporting means'after both sides have been played, whereby thenext and succeeding records ,oi'the stack will each have both sides presented for playing before being deposited onto the supporting means. The invention also embodies thevarious novel mechanisms and combinations thereof for ac complishing the foregoing operations. v 'I'he invention will be better understood from the detailed description which follows when considered in connection with the accompanying drawings, wherein:

Figure 1 is a top plan view of the device with the parts set for playing 12" records. j

Fig.2 is. a side elevation'of the device as viewed from the lower side of Fig. 1. 1

'of'the line's-9 of a the reproduction o ofa record; the turntable and other-operating parts of the mechanism being'omitted. 9

is to be discharged from the "turntable.

Fig. 5 is a fractional detail plan view showing showing the parts in the relation when a record the relationship of the replay setting mechanism Fig. 8;is' a sectional detail taken substantially along'the plane of the-line 8-8 of Fig. 12.

" Fig. 9 is a sectional detail tairen along the plane I v Fig. 12. Fig. 10 is afsectional detail taken along the plane ofthe line III-I0 of Fig.6.

.Fig. 11 is a sectional detail taken 'along the planeofthe line l l ll,of Fig. 8.

I Fig.112is. a sectional detail'taken' the line Il -l4 of Fig. 12.

, Fig. 15 is a section taken the line 15-; ofFig. 12.

operates to clear .the'reproducer arm from" the records onthe turntable'after the completion of from th turntable. v

Fig. 1'? is an enlarged sectiontaken along the Fig. 18'is anenla'rged'section taken along the I plane or the linen 01mg. 1

.Fig. 19 is an enlarged section taken along the plane of the line l$l8of Fig. 3.

Fig. 20 is an ,enlarged detail plan view of'the record receiving and replacing mechanism 'with parts" broken away, the mechanism being set 'i'or operating with 10"-records.

"Fig. 21 isasectlon taken'along the planeot-the 7 tingmechanismu 'Fig122is'a perspective view' oi'the replay seti I V Fig. 3 is a top plan viewshowing the partsmi line 23-23 611 13.20.

substantially along the; T

w tw n bf f a record and its discharge Fig. 24 is a perspective view of the adjusting means for the record receiving and replacing mechanism.

Fig. 25 is a top plan view of a detail of the invention.

Fig. 26 is an enlarged detail of one of the record holding latches shown in Fig. 1.

port an electric motor l2 having a vertical spindle to which is connected a central pin l3 extending upwardly through the supporting table upon which pin there is mounted for rotation there,-

with a turntable i4 adapted to support a stack of records I5, over the top face of the uppermost of which a reproducer arm I1 is adapted to-ride in the conventional clockwise direction, and in doing so reproduce the sound recorded on the sound track of the record. The reproducer arm II has mounted inthefree end thereof a reproducing unit (not shown) having a pick-up needle l8, the said. reproducer arm being pivotally mounted upon a bossi-B upon a vertical pivot so as to swing-laterally and also upon a horizontal axis so as to swing vertically.

Control of the'reproducer Mounted on' theunderside of the reproducer arm is a substantially U or v-shaped support. (similar to the part 48 .in the Mitchell et 'al patent referred to) adapted to pivot about a pin 2l the lower arm of said support having a. roller 22 adapted to ride over a tilting arm 23,.one end of which is loosely secured to thetable ID 'by a tending in normal operating position substantiab, I

1y parallel to the control lever 43 is a tension member 48 consisting of a sleeved member 49 and a pin 50 telescoping therewith, the pin 50 having an adjustable nut 6| at one end thereof to limit its movement in one direction and at its other end being provided with an angular bent portion 52 (Fig. 22) which'engages an openingin the dog 46. The member 49 is connected through a tension spring 63 to one end of a pivoted dog 54 disposed to the rear of the tilting arm substantially opposite the end of the lever 43.

*Secured to the motor shaft or center pin I3 is acontrol member or cam 55 which is rotatable within an Opening 56 within the table, the surface of 'thecam extending slightly above the upper surface of the table in position to engage the pointed end of the dog 46. 1

Record discharge mechanism Referring now to Fi'gs. Ltd and of'lthe drawings, there is shown as rigidly connected to screw 24, the said arm adjacent said'mounting I having downwardly bent lugs 25, the lower faces of which are 'roundedand rest upon the table top as best shown in Figs. 3,19 and 22. The tilting arm 23 adjacent its opposite end has a downwardly directed oblique portion 26 and a bifurcated end 21, which pivotally carries adog 2B which in inactive position extends downwardly over a supporting arm 29 (Figs. 2 and 15) mounted on the-underside of the table, there being an opening 30 in the table to permit the end 21 'of the tilting arm and the dog 28 to move therein. The tilting arm 23 intermediate its ends has an upstanding pin, 23a .and extending downwardly from the underside of said plate-23 is a headed pin 3| which passes through an opening in the table and plate 32, one endof said plate being mounted upon a headed pin 33 and held in engagement with said head by a spring 36 and the other end of which is downwardlyibent and offset as indicated at 35 and extends belowa dash pct 16 to move a plunger 31 thereof" upwardly, as

will be presently explained.

Mounted on the table beneath thetilting arm 211s a plate." which is pivoted at 39, the, portion of the plate underlyingthe tilting arm being formed with a V-shaped notch within which the pin' 3| on the tilting plate is vmovable. Mounted on the plate. 36 is a serrated plate ll havi'ngan upstanding stop pin 42. d

Disposed to one side of the pl te 38 and also extending beneath the tilting-arm is a control lever 43 which is pivotally mounted on the table top at 44, the end of said lever which underlies the tilting armhaving an inclined or wedgelike lug 45, the opposite end of said lever being pivotally connected to a dog having a pointed end, the latter being biased through an opening in an angular the control lever 43 one end of a'pla'te 51, the opposite end of whichis pivotally connected at 58 to one end of a link 59, the opposite endof which link is connectedto one end of a lever 60, theopposite end oflwhich in turn has an u'pstandingfcylindrical portion mounted on an upstanding pivot, pin. 6| carriedfby' a plate 62 which is movable in guided relationove'rlthe top face of ,the table l0, fora purpose which'will be presentlyfexplained. Mounted adiacentthe top'ofjthelcylindrical portionof the. lever 60 is anflarm, adapted. to swingabout'a horizontal pivot 65 (Fig. 2). The freeend of the arm}! has an upwardly curved finger 68 and disposed beneath said curved finger and of shorter length than it, is a spring fingerj61, the free end of which may flex relatively to the finger 66. Also carried by the arm 64' isa laterally-extending ear 68,'one edge of whichjis adapted to engage an upstanding'pin 69' as the arm is moved about its pivot, such engagement operating to ;cause an upward pivoting of the arm 66 about its pivot or'horizontal! axis 65; j Normally the parts assume the relation shown in Figs. 1 and 3 in which relation they are held'by a tension spring Ill connected at one end to the plate 51 andat its opposite end to a fixedanchorage 'H.

The parts thus far described are substan-. tially similar to, or the equivalent of v the corresponding mechanism in the patents to Mitchell et al. and to Rich above referre'd', to and in operation function substantially as follows: i

A stack of records l5 of .a givendiameter such as 10" or'of '12" are mounted 'on the turntable to the extent of the height of the center pin I2. The parts of the mechanism are .set forthe playing of either 10' 'jor, 12," records. as will be explained more ing'detail hereinafter-" The pick-up'needle I8 is placed upon theouter edge of the sound track: of the uppermost record and the controlswitch 12 is then operated to energize the motor l2, to cause rotation of the turntable and the'records thereon and thereby the reproduction of the. topmost record takesplace and may be heard through an"arnpllfying circuit and loud speaker or any mechanical or electrical sound reproducing means (not shown), well known in the art. I

The cam 55. rotates with theflturntable but fails to engage, the pointed end of thedO! 1| which is held in inoperative and non-engaging by a spring 41. Exposition by the spring 41. when the reproducer arm pick-up, in moving in aclockwise direction runs into the lead-in groove at the end of the record the lower arm of they-shaped support 20 will engage the-pin 42,,thereby moving the plate 38 in a countenclockwise direction. In the course of this movement one wall of the V-shaped notch .will thereby press against the pin' 3| on the tilting arm 23 to move said arm in a clockwise direction about the pivot screw 24. I This, movement presses the'tilting arm against the pivoted dog 54 which applies tension of the sleeve member, 49 of the tension member 48 sufllcient to overcome the tensionof the spring 41, thereby tilting the dog 46.-into the position-shown in Fig. i .When the cam 55 strikes theend of the dog 46 it acts to perform several functions substantially simultane ously as follows a As the dog is carried around. by thecam to thelimit of movement provided by a slot 13 in the table, the lever 43 is moved about itspivot 44 so that the opposite. end thereof is caused to-ride under the .tilting' lever 23 and in doing so engage the oblique portion 25 thereof causing saidlever to rockabout its ears 25. As the lever 23 is tilted it raises the dog 28 into'upstanding relation upon-the supporting arm 29. The rais ing of the'lever 23 liftsthe tone arm from'the record and because of the resulting inclination of the tilting lever 23the tone arm will then ride down the incline out toward the periphery of the record. As thelever 23 is raised it also operates through the pin 3| to raise the plate 32 beneath the table so that the end 35 of said plate engages the plunger 31 to raise the'same through the dash pct 35. In the course of returning the reproducer arm to its outermost position, the laterally extending ear 51a on the reproducerfarm engages over the top v of the plunger 31 by which it is supportedjin elevated position. Movement of the reproducer arm in a clockwise direction upon being raised from the record is limited bythe' upstanding pin 23:; (Figs. 1, 2, 3 and 19);

Simultaneously with the above actions the movement of the control lever 43 will through the link 59 cause the lever 60 to move in a clockwise direction about the p vot 6| which will move the arm 64 in a clockwise direction toward the records. The upwardly curved'finger 65 will thereupon ride up and over the perlphery of the topmost'record, until the spring finger 31' is positioned to slide under the topmost record. Continued inward movement will cause the spring finger 61 to separate the topmost record from the one immediately below it'and grip the peripheral edge thereof-in c'oniunction with the finger 66. Continued inwa d movement of the arm 64 will cause theear I 59 and swing the arm vertically so as'to lift the edge of the record, arresting its rotation until the center opening there n is free from the upper end of the center pin, However the opposite edge of the recordwill remain in engagea.

ment with the group of records on the turntable, the speed of rotation of wh ch will throw the engaging edge of the elevated ,record outwardly and away from the turntable to be received by the inwardly directed arms 14' and '15 These arms" have supporting and guiding ledges' 14a and a which lead into grooves 14band 15b formed. in the inner faces ofthe arms to receive the record. The arms 14 'and 15 aremounted for movement toward and away from each other 68 to engage the; pin

record as it is discharged from the turntable in substantiallyto accommodate either .a' 10" or a'12ffrecord periphery or, the

shaped that when set to held in a position suchthat the central opening therein will be at the same radial distancelfromtheaxisEupon which the arms are rotatable, as

is the central pin l3.

. For holding a record within; thelarms so that.

iii-detail m Fig. 26'

upon oneof thearms .141 and 15 and is biased faces 16c and 16d,'the surface 150 being adapted to be first engaged and moved outwardly by a to. permit the record to, pass said dogs to be received within the record receiving arms, and the surface-15d record above its diameter after it has passed the dogs in 'enter'ing the grooves 14b, and 15b in the arms 14 a'nd'l15 respectively and the dogs have again moved inwardly under the force ofhsprings 16b and said recordagainst movement within said arms while they are being pivotally moved from their normal record receiving. position in whichthey extend laterally outwardly from,the turntable to their record replacingpositi on' in which they, extend in overlying relation to the turntable.

For limitingv the inwardf movement of each of the ,dogs lfidbyth'espringfltb each record .receiving. arm isprovided a stop pin 16c. Disposed below'thearms 14 and 15 when in normal record receiving ,positiomds a record receiving t'rayJS'. into which a record may be debos tedby' gravity.

from the receiving armsafter both faces'of the record have been reproduced, as will be presently xplained.

Record receiving and operating mechanism Referring to Figs. 6, 12, '20 and 2i,'the record.

receiving arms '14 and15 are fixedly-mounted upon a shaft'11consisting' of a' pair of telescoping driving members 11a and 11b supported in upright bearings 18 carriedby a two-part chan nel member 19 the parts of which are slldable within a second fixed channel member supported on thetable l0 adjacentone edge there of. .Mounted on the shaft 11 are freely rotatable rollers 8| and 82 whichprovide a rolling support for the discharge of a record from the turntable into the record receiving arms. Fixedly carried by the shaft 11a adjacent the a in a bearing 33 isva sprocket wheel'84 over which is trained a trained over a on a shaft 81 which is supported in'suitable bearings as, as from the'underside or the table l0 and vertical parallel alignment with theshaft 11. I

Mounted 'onithe shaft 31 is a sleeve 90 adapted. to rotate; relatively, to the shaft but immovable longitudinally with respect thereto in view' of-a. set screw 9| which extendsthrough said sleeve and into an annular groove 92in said shaft (Fig. 7). Mounted on the with is a sprocket wheel 33-;having a hub which the splitproviding an axial I carries a split ring 34,

as will be hereinafter explained; and are so accommodate either of such records, therecord will be received and The latches 16 of which the one I mounted on the record receiving arm "is shown each consists of a dog 'flia whichis pivotally mountedintermediate its ends inwardly by a leaf spring 16b, the arms' .!oeing, recessed to accommodate theendsof the dogs; The inner face ofqeach dog-isformed' with sur I.

being ad apted to overlie the function to hold;

left end thereof" sprocket chain 85" which is also sprocket wheel 86 fixedly mounted sleeve 90 for rotation theregroove 940. Also fixedly mounted on the shaft 91 to the left of the split ring is a ring 59 which is held in spaced relation to the ring 94 by a spacer sleeve 99, the ring 99 being formed with an axial groove 91 within which is pivotally mounted one end of a dog" whichis-biased outwardly by a spring 99, the free end of said dog being adapted under certain conditions to engage within the axial groove94a inthe ring 94. Encircling the spacer s'leeve99 is a'split ring I which is fixedly supported'in' position by a depending bracket IN. The split or'groove I02 in said ring I00 is disposed at the top thereof and directly overlying said groove is a pivoted'lever I09, one end of which is pivotally mounted at I04 to a depending bracket I09, the opposite end ofsaid lever having mounted thereon a roller I09 which rides" over the surface of a four-armed cross cam I01 which is fixedly carried on the hub of a ratchet wheel I09 which in turn is loosely mounted on the shaft 91. Also mounted on the hub of the ratchet wheel I09 and adapted to rotate relatively thereto is an arm I09 which carries a spring pressed pawl IIO for engaging the teeth of the ratchet wheel I09. The free end of the arm I 09 is adapted to ride over the surface of a cam III mounted'on a shaft II2 (Fig. 18) and for holding said arm in engagement with said cam surface, there is provided a tension spring I I9, one end of which is anchored to a pin 4 on the arm and the other end of which is anchored to a rigid support II5 depending from the table I0.

When the parts are in the position shown in, Fig. 7, that is, when the roller I09 on the lever I03 is-resting on a high point of the star cam. I01 the dog 99 is pressed outwardly by its spring 99 through the groove I02'in the ring I00 and hence the ring 94 will'be free to rotate around the shaft 91 when the sprocket wheel 99 is rotated. In other words, in said position of the parts rotation of the sprocket wheel 99 will not rotate the shaft 91.. When the star cam I01 is advanced 45 by the'ratchet wheel I09 the roller I09 will drop by gravity onto a low point of the cam, the weight of the lever i09 pressing upon the dog 99 will move it against the tension of its spring 99 into the groove 94a as the sprocket wheel 93 is rotated and, thereby cause rotation of the shaft 91. t V in the position just described, rotation of the sprocket wheel. 93 will rotate theshaft 81 and with it the sprocket wheel '99, rotation of which will be transmitted through the sprocket chain 95 to sprocket wheel 94 and cause rotation of i the shaft whichcarries the record receiving arms 14 and 15. I

The shaft H2 is supported in bearings on de-' pending brackets I'I9 (Figs. 8 and 9) and rotation is imparted to said shaft by means of a gear wheel H1 in mesh with a pinion l I9 mountedon a shaft II9supp0rted in brackets I20. Rotation is imparted to the shaft H9 by unwinding a cable Hi from a drum I22 fixedly carriedby said shaft in a manner to be presently explained (seeFIgs. 12, 13 and 17). Also mounted on the shaft .I I2' and in alignment with the sprocket wheel 99 on shaft 91, is a sprocket wheel I29 and trained over the sprocket wheels I29 and 99 is a sprocket chain. I24 through which rotation is imparted Accordingly, when the parts are shaft 91. Extending upwardlythrough aslot I29 in the table and normally disposed beneath the plate 911s a round'n'osed end I29 of a lever'I21 whichis pivotally supported intermediate its ends by a link- I29 mounted .on a depending bracket I29, the said lever being normally'urged upwardly by a leaf spring I99 and outwardly, that is toward the uncovered endof the slot I29,fby a spring I9I, the opposite or lower end of the lever carr'yingfa roller I92. Normally,the'roller I92 seats upon'the low portion of an upwardlyextending arm I99 'which iscarried by" a lever I94',one end of which-is pivotally mounted as at 199 to a de-" pending bracket I99 (Fig'sJZ and 12)' and the other end I91 of which isboth bifurcated and forked to engage and aroundthe grooves adjacent the ends I99 and I99 '01. a pair of spools I40 and HI respectively which are loosely mounted on a} vertical shaft I42 which extends 'up through the table andfixedlfcarriesat its upper end a pinion I49 which is in mesh with a gear wheel I44 (see Figs. sand 22), which gear wheel is carried by and rotatable with the cam99. 'jI'he lever I94 is biasedupwardly by a tension spring I49, as best shown in Fig. 14; Fixedly carried by.

the shaft I42 i miter pinion m which in mesh with a miter gearl411which latter are mesh with a secondmiter pinion; I49 "loosely mounted on the shaft; I42.. Thepinion I49 1: supported on the shaft I42 by a stop collar I49. The under face of the hub ofthe miter pinion I49 is provided with a depending lug I99 which is adapted to cooperate with an upwardly ex; tending lug I9I on the spool I49 and the lower face of the spool MI is formed with a diametrical rib I92 which is adaptedto cooperate with an upstanding pin I99 on'the hub of the pinion I49. The miter gear I41 is suitably S pp rted upon a stud I94 mounted in a depending bracket I99. The spools I49 and HI have theopposite ends of the cable HI attached thereto, several convolutions of the cable extending around the spools and the intermediate portion of the cable extending. in several convolutions about the rotatable drum I22 [which is fixedly carried on the shaft 9.

When a record is being discharged from the turntable by the operation of control lever ,49.

. whereby the arm 94 with its spring fingers 99 and to the shaft 91 under certain conditions to be ex- I plained.

Referring now to Figs. 1, 6, 12, 14, 1'1 and 18, I

91 are. operated, as hereinbforeexplained,,the plate 91 is moved to the position shown in Fig. 5

whereby the nosed end I29 of the lever I21 is uncovered and under the force of the springs I and I9I itis moved. outwardly in the slot I29so that when the plate returns to its normal posi-j' tion after the record has'been dischargedthej nosed end ,I29'iseng'aged by a shoulder I99 on the plate 91 and held inextendedposition. As

the nosed end I29 moves outwardly theroller I92- at the opposite end ofsaid lever ridesupwardly along the upwardly extending. arm I99 depressing the same and with it the lever I94 bywhich said tatesthe shaft m, and thereby through the" pinion liland gear wheel I I1 and sprocket wheel I22 drives the sprocket chain I29"to rota'te'tlie" sprocket wheel '99 and therethrough'operat the arms 14 and I9 of the record replacing mecha nism.'

Mounted on the shaft I I2 is a control cam I91 which has a laterally extending pin I99 eccenarm is carried. This actionf'orces. .the. spool I4I downwardlyv into locking engagement with the trically mounted thereon. Bearing on the surface of the cam I51 is one end of a gravity activated lever I59 which'is pivoted to 9. depending bracket I60, the opposite end of said lever being adapted to seat upon a lateral oifset' dog I6I on the lever I 21 when the latter is moved outwardly in the slot I25 upon the discharge of a record. When the lever I59 rides over the high of the cam I51 it operates to depress and shift the lever I21 against th tension of the springs I30 and I3.I to move it beneath the plate 51. Mounted on a bearing I62 loosely carried by the shaft H9 is a lever I63, the.underface of one end of which is adapted to be engaged by the pin I58 on the cam I51 during the normal operation of the machine; that is when a record is being played the'cam I51 is stationary and the pin I58 engages below the lever I63 to hold one end of said lever upwardly and the other encl'in its lowermost position at which it engages the lever I34 and presses it downwardly against the tension of the spring I45. In this position the lever I34 operates to hold the spools I40 and MI in a neutral position between and out of engagement with the miter pinions I46 and I48.

The period of rotation of the spool MI in unwinding the cable from the drum H9 is governed by the control cam I51, the extent ,of rotation of which is such that when the record receiving arms have moved from a record receiving position extending laterally downwardly from th turntable to a position overlying the tumtable, the high of the cam I51 will move from its normal position to raise the end of the lever I59 to trip the dog I6I on the lever I21. This action removes the downward force upon the arm I33 whereby the spring I45 operates to disengage the spool I4I from the pinion'l48 and move the spool I40 into engagement with the pinion I46. This action causes an unwinding of the cable from the drum onto the spool I40 and the winding of the cable onto the drum from spool I4I thereby rotating the drum in the opposite direction, which action also rotates the various parts controlled by the rotation of the drum in the opposite direction and moves the record receiving arms from the position overlying the turntable to its initial position extending laterally downwardly from the turntable. When this action is completed the pin I58 will again have been brought under the end of the lever I63 to raise the same and move thelever I34 into neutral position.

Control of reproducer arm beyond periphery of the records on turnable On the shaft II2 for rotation therewith there is also mounted a cam I64. Dependingly mounted fromthe underside of the table and extending across the face of the cam I64 is a channel member I65 having a slot I66 through the base thereof. Mounted in said channel member for movement therein is a rack I61 the back of which carries a pin extending through said slot and mounted on said pin is a roller I68. Extending downwardly from the bottom of the rack is a pin I69 which extends through a guide opening in a flange I10 and surroundingsaid pin is a spring III which acts to urge said rack upwardly. The cam I64 in its movement engages the roller I68 to move. the rack downwardly while the spring "I operates to move the rack upwardly and maintain the roller in contact with the cam. In mesh with the rack I61 is a pinion I12 which is loosely mounted on a shaft I13 supported in bearings I14 and I15 depending from the underside of the table. Carried by a hub on the pinion I12 is an arm which carries a spring pressed pawl I 16 (Figs. 6 and 11) which is adapted to engage the teeth of a ratchet wheel I11'flxedly mounted pinion it will be noted that the shaft I13 is only rotated as the rack is moved downwardly. After the high of the cam has passed the lowermost point in its rotation and moves upwardly the rack is moved upwardly by the tension of the spring I1I acting thereon, but in the course of this action the pawl slips around the ratchet wheel and hence does not rotate the shaft. In other words it is only when the rack moves downwardly that the shaft I13 is rotated. Mounted at the opposite end of the shaft I13 is a drum .I18having a substantially U-shaped cam groove I19 in its surface within which extends a pin I depending from a bifurcated end I8Ia on an arm I8I which is pivotally mounted ona pin I8Ib depending from the table I0 (Fig. 22). Extending into the bifurcated end of the arm I8I through an arcuate slot I82 in the table is a pin I83 which is dependingly carried at the rear end of the reproducer arm I1, the connection'between the pin I83 and the reproducer arm being such as to permit said reproducer arm topivot about an axis disposed at a right angle to the axis of the pin.

Also mounted on the shaft I13 is a cam I84 which in the course of its rotation is adapted to engage one arm I85 of a bell crank lever I86, the other arm I81 of which is adapted to engage and trip the dog 28 carried by the end 21 of the tilting arm 23. The bell crank lever I86 is biased by a spring (not shown) to return it into operative relation to the cam after tripping the dog. When a record is to be discharged by vthe mechanism as hereinbefore explained, the reproducer arm is returned to the outer periphery of the record and held in elevated position off the record by the seating of ear 51a. upon the plunger 31. In the replacement on the turntable of a record by the record receiving arms it will be noted that the reproducer arm would hinder such replacement unless removed beyond the outer periphery of the record. To obviate this, the reproducer arm is moved outwardly while the record receiving arms are being moved from the record receiving position to the record replacing position. The movement of the record replacing arms is controlled by the unwinding of the cable from the drum I22 onto the spool HI and it is this same unwinding action which controls the movement of the reproducer arm outwardly in the following manner.

Rotation of the drum I22 rotates the cam l64 through rotation of the pinion I I8, gear wheel H1 and shaft II2. Rotationgof the cam- I64 moves the rack I61 downwardly and in doing so rotates the pinion I12 which in turn rotates the ratchet wheel I 11 and with it the shaft I13. Ro-

tation of the shaft I13 rotates the drum cam I18 I to carry the pin I80 from the outer edge of the cam groove I19 inwardly. The pin I80 through its bifurcated end moves the; pin I83 in the aren'- ate slot I82 and carries the reproducer arm' outwardly in view of the pivotal mounting ofthe reproducer on the boss I9. After a record has been replaced and the rotation of the drum I22 is reversed, rotation of the cam I18 is continued in the same direction whereupon the pin I80 is moved outwardly in the cam groove I19 and brings the reproducer arm back to the position overlying the outer periphery of the record. When this takes place the tripping of the dog 28 by the bell crank arm I81 causes the tilting arm 23 to move downwardly toward the table, and as this action causes the plunger 31 to descend it permits the lowering of the reproducer arm pickup needle onto the record due to the weight of the reproducer arm upon the plunger 31 of the dash pot 38 which is now unsupported.

, Setting of mechanism for either .or 12" records I The channel member 19 is formed in two sections19a and 19b which are mounted for sliding engagement in the channel member 88 into which is threaded headed screws 88a and 88b which pass through slots 19c and 19d in the channel members 19a. and 19b respectively. Carried by the member 19a and disposed beneath the table I8 is an angular plate I88, one arm I89 of which extends at right angles to the channel member 19a and the other arm I98 extends in parallel relation thereto. The arm I98 has a downwardly extending flange I88a extending along the inner edge thereof. The arm I98 at its free end has a downwardly bent lip I9I and a second downwardly bent lip I92 formed by cutting the material of the arm and bending it downwardly.

Carried by the channel member 19b and disposed in underlying relation to the table and in a common plane with the angular plate I88 is a plate I93 having a cut-out portion I94 into which the arm I98 of the plate I88 extends. The plate I93 also has an arm I95 extending in parallel spaced relation to the arm I88 and is formed with a downwardly extending flange I98. The plate I93 also has an arm I91 extending parallel to the channel member and flanking the arm I98 on the plate I89 and is formed with spaced downwardly directed lips I91a and I98.

Disposed between the flanges I880 and I98 is a link I99 which is pivoted intermediate its ends as at 288 to the underside of the table. Connected to one end of the link I99 is apin 28I which extends upwardly through an arcuate slot 282 in the table and connected to said pin TM is one end of a lever 283 which extends, across the face of the table and has its opposite end connected to the plate 82. The plate 82 has a laterally extending arm 284 at the outer end of which is anupstanding finger engaging knob 285. Depending from the underside of the plate 82 is a pin 288 which extends through a semi-circular slot 281 in the table and connected to one end of the pin 288 is a tension spring 288, the opposite end of which is connected to an anchoring pin 289 depending from the underside of the table. The plate 82 has a second pin 288a which extends through a slot 281a in the table. It will thus be seen that by shifting the plate 82 from the position shown in Fig. 20 wherein the setting ot the parts is for the playing of 10" records to the position shown in Figs. 1 and 3 where the setting is'for 12" records that the link I99 when shifted will pivot about the point 288 to move the plates I88 and I93 apart and with the movement of said plates will move'the channel members 19a and 19b apart so that the record receiving arms carried thereby will be positioned to receive the 12" records.

Mounted in an angular bracket 2I8 depending from the underside of the table is a pin 2 to the lower end of which is secured a ring 2I2 having a radially extending pin 2'I3 adapted for cooperative engagement with a radially extending pin 2 carried by the sleeve'98. Secured to the upper end of the pin 2 is an arm 2I5 the opposite ends of which are reversely hooked as indicated at 2I8, as bestshown in Fig. 25. The hooked ends 2I8 engage around the lips I92 and I98 so that as the arm is rotated about the axis of the pin 2 in a counter-clockwise direction as the pin 2 on the sleeve 98 in the course of its rotation engages the pin 2I3 on the ring 2I2 the channel members 190. and 191) will be moved apart longitudinally thereby moving the record receiving arms apart a distance sufllcient to release a record supported thereby. spring means (not shown) may be connected to the bracket 2I8 to return the pin 2I3 to its normal position. As the rotation of the sleeve 98 is reversed in the operation of the machine it too may be made to move the pin 2I3 back to its normal position, but as such movement does not cause the arm 2I5 to return the channel members 19a. and 19b back to normal position, supplemental means are employed for thispurpose. These supplemental means are in the form of compression springs 2" and 2I1a positioned about the shaft 11 adjacent each end thereof, one end of the spring 2" bearing against the bearing 18 and the other end abutting against a cross pin 2I8 mounted in the ends of the shaft 11, while the ends of spring 2I1a may abut against bearing 84 and the outer end of arm 15. The record release mechanism above described applies to the machine when set for operating upon 10" .records. When operating upon12' records it will be remembered that the plates I88 and I93 are longitudinally moved apart a distance of 2" and when this takes place the lips I92 and I98 ride across the arm 2" and the lips I9I and I91 come into operative engagement with the arm 2 I 5 In the shifting of the setting mechanism from the position for playing 10" records to that for playing 12" records or vice versa, the drum cam I19 must also be reset to provide for the proper clearance of the reproducer arm with respect to the periphery of the records on the turntable. To provide for this the drum cam is longitudinally adjustable upon the shaft I13, by a slidable arm 2I9 one end 2280f which is forked and engages in a grooved hub 2 2I on drum I18 and the other end of said arm having an edge 222 which is held in engagement with a disk 223 mounted on the pin 288, by means of a tension spring 224, one end of which is anchored to a pin 225 depending from the armand the other end of which is anchored to'a pin 228 depending from the table I8. v

The arm 2I9 is slidably supported upon a pair of headed pins 221 and 223 supported by the table and extending through slots 229 and 238 respectively in the arm. 7

Operation Suitable the lead-in groove at the end of the record, the

control lever. is operated causing the tilting arm 23 to pivot upwardly and set the dog 28 upright on the supporting arm 29. As this is taking place the record discharge mechanism comes into operation whereby the arm 64 is moved toward the record and the upwardly curved finger 66 and its operating spring finger 61 operate to engage the topmost record of the stackto tiltit over the center pin I3 whereby owing to the rotation of the turntable, the record is discharged therefrom and is received in the grooves 14b and 15b in the record receiving arms H and I and is held in said arms by the latches 1B. As the plate 51 uncovers thenosed end I28 of the lever I21 said nosed end under the force of the springs acting thereon moves outwardly in the slot I26 and sets into operation the automatic means for replacing the record back upon the turntable or for discharging the record onto the record receiving tray 11, depending upon whether the roller I06 on the lever I03 is resting up'on'a high or a low portion of the star cam I01. Simultaneously with this action the reproducer arm is moved radially outwardly to clear the periphery of the records on the turntable so that replacement of a record upon the turntable can talre place without hindrance-of the reproducing arm. After a record has been replaced and while thereco'rd receiving arms are being returned to their normal position, the drum cam I19 operates to move the reproducmg arm radially inwardly to position the pick-up needle over the outermostsound groove of the record. Immediately after this takes place the bell-crank lever I86 operates to trip the dog 28 thereby permitting the reproducing arm' to be gradually lowered by the downward movement of the plunger in the dash pct 86 until the pick-up needle engages the record and the playing thereof is proceeded with. Of course at the commence ment of the reproduction of a record both sides of which are to be reproduced, the roller I06 should be resting one low of the cam I01 so as to insure movement of the record receiving arms to replace the record on the turntable. After the first side of the record has been reproduced and the record replaced on the turntable, the cam I01 will have been moved 45 so as.to present the to the beginning ofthe record, the top face of which will be repeatedly reproduced until manually stopped by throwing off the switch 12.

While We have shown and described a preferred embodiment of our invention, it will be understood that we do not desire to be limited to'the various specific details and mechanisms disclosed, since these may be modified within the range of engineering skill without departing from the spirit of our invention as defined in the-appended claims.

What we claim is: i I

1. An a'utomatic phonograph of the type comprising a turntable having a central pin adapted to receive a stack of records, a re'producer mounted on an arm laterally of thetumtable and movof a" record mounted on the turntable, means for removing the repro'ducer from the record, meansfor peripherally, engaging and raising the uppermost record of the stack for freeing it from the pin an'd'c'ausing its lateral discharge from the turntable upon. completion of the reproduction of the record, pivotally mounted means normally disposed laterally of and below the turntable for receiving the record upon its discharge from the turntable with the surface last reproduced facing upwardly, characterized in that such phonograph includes rec-v ord supporting means below said record receiving means, means for selectively operating upon the record receiving means at the completion of the reproduction of the record to alternately, operate the recordreceivingmeans to move it upwardly about its pivot through an arc of approximately 180 to overlie the turntable to replace thedlscharged record upon the turntable with the last reproduced surface of the record facing downwardly and to release a record after'both sides roller I06 on the high of the cam so that when the opposite side of the record is reproduced and the record discharged into the receiving arms, said arms will not be operated to replace the record on the turntable but on the contrary the sleeve 80 will be rotated without rotating the shaft 81 and when the arms are operated to release the record said arms will be in normal overlying relation to the receiving tray 18' into which the record will be deposited.

The cycle of operations describedwill be repeated until both sides of all of the records on the turntable excepting the bottom-most have been reproduced and discharged into the receiving tray. The adjustment and setting of the arm 64 is such that it will fail to engage and remove the bottom most record on the turntable so that said record will not be removed from the turntable after its top face has been reproduced. However the cycle of movements of the reproducer arm and the other mechanisms of the automatic phonograph will be repeated and In due course will cause the reproducer to be returned thereof have been reproduced, so that the record will move by gravity onto the record supporting means below the record receiving means, and

means operable upon the completion of the-reproduction of a record for controlling the various operations of the aforementioned'means in the order recited. V

2. .An automatic phonograph according to claim 1, wherein the record receiving means is pivotally mounted tomove from its normal'record receiving position in which it 'extends laterally outward from the turntable to a record replacing position overlying the turntable in both of which .positions'itis adapted to support a record and wherein the means for selectively operating upon the record receiving means to replace a record upon the turntable and to release a recordjonto the record supporting means is operable when therecord receiving means is in either of said aforementionedposition's.

v 3. An automatic phonograph accordingto claim 1, comprising a control shaft, a supplemental shaft'adapted to be driven by said control shaft and having mounted thereon the means for selectively operating upon .the record receiving means to alternately replace the discharged record upon the turntable with thelast reproduced surface of the record facing downwardly and to release therecord so that it will move by gravity onto the record supporting means below the rec- 7 ord receiving means.

4. An automatic phonograph according to claim I 1, comprising a control shaft, a supplemental shaft adapted to be driven by said control shaft and having mounted thereon ratchet means controlled by the'control shaft for selectively operating upon the record receiving means-to alternately replace the discharged record upon the turntable with the last reproduced surface of the record facing downwardly and to release the record so that it will move by gravity onto the record supporting means below the record receiving means.

5. An automatic phonograph according to claim 1, wherein the record receiving means consist of a pair of arms mounted on a shaft for rotation therewith and movable from a normal record receiving position in which they extend laterally outwardly from the turntable to a record replacing position overlying the turntable, spring means for biasing saidarms toward each other, and wherein the means for selectively operating upon the record receiving arms to alternately move them to replace and to discharge the record also operate to move the arms against the tension of the biasing spring means for releasing the record when the arms are in either of the alternate functioning positions.

6. An automatic phonograph of the type comprising a turntable having a central pin adapted to receive a stack of records, a reproducer mounted on an arm laterally of the'turntable and movable over the surface of a record mounted on the turntable, means for removing the reproducer from the record, means for peripherally engaging and raising the uppermost record of the stack for freeing it from the pin and causing its lateral discharge from the turntable upon completion of the reproduction of the record, means for receiving the record upon its discharge from the turntable with the surface last reproduced facing upwardly, characterized in that such phonograph includes record supporting means belowsaid record receiving means, means for selectively operating upon the record receiving means at the completion of the reproduction of the record to alternately operate the record receiving means to replace the discharged record upon the turntable with the last reproduced surface of the record facing downwardly and to release a record after both sides thereof have been reproduced, so that it will move by gravity onto the record supporting means below the record receiving means, manual means for varying the adjustment of the record receiving means so that it will operate with either a 10" or a 12" record and means operable upon the completion of the reproduction of a record for controlling the operations of all of the aforementioned means except the means for varying the adjustment of the record receiving means.

7. An automatic phonograph according to claim 6, wherein therecord receiving means is pivotally mounted to move from a normal'record receiving position in which it extends laterally outward from the turntable to a record replacing position overlying the turntable, in both of which positions it is adapted to support a record and wherein the means for selectively operating upon the record receiving means to replace a record upon the turntable and to release a record onto the record supporting means is operable when the record receiving means is in either of said aforementioned positions.

8. An automatic phonograph of the type comprising a turntable having a central pin adapted to receive a stack of records, a reproducer mounted on an arm laterally of the turntable and movable over the surface of a record mounted on the turntable, means for removing the reproducer from the record, means for periperally engaging andraising the uppermost record of the stack for freeing it from the pin and causing its lateral discharge from the turntable upon completion of the reproduction of the record, -pivotally mounted means normally disposed laterally of and below the turntable for receiving the record upon its discharge from the turntable with the surface last reproduced facing upwardly, characterized in that such phonograph includes record supporting means below said record receiving means, means for selectively operating upon the record receiving means at the completion of the reproduction of the recordv to alternately operate the record receiving means to move it upwardly about its pivot through an arc of approximately to overlie the turntable to replace the dischargedrecord upon the turntable with the last reproduced surface of the record facing downwardly and to release a record after both sides thereof have been reproduced, so that it will move by gravity onto the record supporting means below the record receiving means, a single manually operable means for varying the adjustment of the operative means for peripherally engaging and raising the uppermost record of the stack for freeing it fom the pin and causing the lateral discharge of the record from the turntable upon completion of the reproduction of the record and for the adjustment ofthe record receiving means so thatsaid last two mentioned means will operate with either a 10" or a 12" record, and means operable upon the completion of the reproduction of a record for controlling the operations of all of the aforementioned means except the manually operable means.

9. An automatic phonograph according to claim 1, including means for moving the reproducer outwardly beyond the periphery of the records on the turntable after the discharge of a reproduced record from the turntable to permit replacing of the reproduced record in reversed position onto the tumtable' by the record receiving means and means for returning the'reproducer in overlying relation to the beginning of the sound groove on a record and lowering said reproducer onto said "record.

10.. ,An automatic phonograph of the type comprising a turntable having a central pin adapted to receive a stack of records, a reproducer mounted on an arm laterally of the turntable and movable over the surface of a record mounted on the turntable, means for removing the reproducer from the record, means for peripherally engaging and raising the uppermost record of the stack for freeing it from the pin and causing its lateral discharge from the turntable upon completion of the reproduction of the record, pivotally mounted means normally-disposed laterally of and below the turntable for receiving the record upon its discharge from the turntable with the surface last reproduced facing upwardly, characterized in that such phonograph includes means for operating said last mentioned means to move it upwardly about its pivot through an arc of approximately 180 to overlie the turntable to replace the discharged record upon the turntable with the last reproduced surface of the record facing downwardly and means operable upon the completion of the reproduction of a record for controlling the operation of the various aforementioned means in the order recited, said record receiving means consisting of a pair of pivotally mounted arms adapted to be moved from a normal record receiving position in which they extend laterally outward from the turntable to 1aaira'iecord replacing position overlying the turn- 11. An automatic phonograph according to claim 10 further characterized in that the means for operating the record receiving means also functions to move said arms apart to release a record when said arms are in overlying relation to the turntable.

12. An automatic phonograph according to claim 10 further characterized in that the pair or pivotally mounted arms are grooved on their inner faces to accommodate a record and wherein latches are carried by said arms for holding a record stationary within said arms while they are being moved from the normal record receiving position to the record replacing position overlying the turntable.

13. An automatic phonograph of the type described comprising a turntable having a central pin adapted to receive a stack of records, a reproducer mounted on an arm laterally of the turntable and movable over the surface of a record mounted on the turntable, means for removing the reproducer from the record, means for peripherally engaging and raising the topmost record of the stackfor freeing it from the central pin and causing the lateral discharge of said record from the turntable upon completion of the reproduction of the record characterized in that such phonograph includes laterally adjustable means for receiving the record upon its discharge from the turntable, means for operating the last mentioned means to replace the discharged record upon the turntable with the last reproduced surface of the record facing downwardly, manual means for varying the adjustment of the record receiving means so that it will operate with either a 10" or a 12" record and means operable upon the completion of the reproduction of a record for controlling the operation of all 01' the aforementioned means except the means for varying the adjustment of the record receiving means, said adjustable means for receiving the record upon its discharge from the turntable consisting of a pair of arms longitudinally adjustable upon a shaft for rotation therewith and movable from a normal record receiving position in which they extend laterally outward from the tumtable to a record replacing position in overlying relation to the turntable, said arms being grooved on their inner faces to accommodate a record and having latches for holding either a 10" or a 12" record stationary with respect to a common center within said arms while they are being moved from the normal record receiving position to the record replacing position overlying the turntable.

WILLIAM A. DE HART. FREDERICK A. KOLMETZ. 

